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What is phonics?#
Phonics is the relationship between letters and sounds.
For example, the letter ‘m’ shows the sound mmmmm.
Children are taught how to:
- recognise the sounds that letters show
- recognise combinations of letters that show one sound (such as “ou”)
- blend these sounds together to make words.
Why it's important#
Phonics is an essential part of learning to read - children use it to work out new words they don’t yet know how to read.
Learning how to blend sounds helps beginner readers to read words accurately, setting them up for future reading success.
Hihira Weteoro#
Hihira Weteoro is the name for the checks to understand how your child is progressing in phonics for te reo Māori.
Hihira Weteoro focuses on distinguishing sounds and identifying letters and words that are heard.
The checks include the use of the world-first Auditory Phonological Assessment Tool (APAT). APAT is designed specifically for te reo Māori pānui and tuhituhi learning.
Children listen to words to distinguish if they’re the same or different.
What happens in Hihira Weteoro checks#
Hihira Weteoro checks will be done after 20 weeks, 40 weeks and again at 55 weeks.
The 20-week check, using the Auditory Phonological Assessment Tool (APAT), involves your child listening to sounds to determine if the words are the same or different.
The 40-week check focuses on your child’s ability to identify lowercase letters of the Māori alphabet by sound, name or giving a word that starts with the letter. It also confirms the sounds, and their correct use of short and long vowel sounds and consonants.
The 55-week phonics check assesses how much progress your child is making in pānui and tuhituhi skills.
When phonics checks start#
All kura will be required to carry out phonics checks in 2026. If your child started kura recently or will be starting during 2025, ask your child’s kaiako or the tumuaki if they are running phonics checks.
Finding out the results#
Your child's kaiako or the tumuaki will also be best placed to let you know what you can expect in terms of a report on your child’s phonics check.
We will automatically collect the results to build a picture of how well the education system is working for our beginning readers.
Why we introduced Hihira Weteoro#
In 2024 the Te Reo Matatini wāhanga ako was updated through changes to Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. The curriculum was expanded to include Rangaranga Reo ā-Tā, a component specifically related to learning to read and write in te reo Māori.
This work to raise achievement includes the introduction of phonics checks for those ākonga learning through te reo Māori.
Having a standard check that all schools and kura complete will help us know how well the education system is working for our youngest learners.
Help your child with their phonics
- Incorporate phonics into daily conversations. For example, when cooking, you can ask your child what sounds the ingredients start with.
- Sound sorting: create a set of pictures or objects that start with different sounds. Have your child sort them into groups based on their beginning sounds.
- Word building: use magnetic letters or letter tiles to build simple words and ask your children to sound them out.
- Play snap with letter cards matching pairs of letters and saying the correct sounds.
Understanding the phonics check